Correspondents of Radio Imruz, a private FM station in Tajikistan’s capital city Dushanbe, approached Dushanbevodokanal, the municipal water facility requesting that it answer residents’ questions regarding the quality of water and frequent interruptions of water supply in city districts.
Saidmurod Kalandarov, a Dushanbevodokanal official, told Radio Imruz that he has no permission from the top managers of his agency to share any information with journalists. After that, correspondents approached Azam Tabarov, director of Dushanbevodokanal, who explained that the mayor’s office strongly advised his staff to communicate only with the government media outlets.
Tabarov added that “the municipal authorities gave him a list of local media, with whom it is not recommended to communicate at all.” Among the media in this list were popular private radio companies – Radio Vatan and Asia Plus.
Radio Vatan has recently finished broadcasting of a series of talk shows covering the problems of ecology and sanitation in Dushanbe and its suburbs.
The authorities’ wariness can be explained by the growing criticism from both the media and public at large for their inability to improve the water and sanitation situation.
Regardless of the large loans and grants provided by international monetary institutions such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and by governments of donor countries, the water supply networks in the town with the population of over 1 million leave much to be desired.
Drinking water is not properly purified and remains dangerous for consumption, especially during rainy seasons and in summer when temperatures reach 45 degrees Celsius.
Commenting on denial of information, lawyers representing the Tajik National Association of Independent Media (NANSMIT) said, “The Tajik legislation guarantees free access to publicly important information, and statements made by Dushanbevodokanal can be interpreted as a violation of the law”.

NANSMIT / OOSKAnews